My jaded and lazy palate, comfortable with my favourite hawker foods, and my other staple, PS Café, got a delightful wake-up call at Wild Rocket.

Chef Willin Low was a lawyer and decided to follow his passion, and cook. You know my theory on passion + pursuits…the results are always better.

When you eat Willin’s food, you can taste the love, the passion, and his inspiration to cook. He says he cooks what he likes to eat, and wants to share that. Fantastic I say! We are lucky to be able to share in his experiments with fusion and flavour.

The laksa linguine had been much touted so I ordered that. I wasn’t expecting what I got – a laksa pesto linguine. I’d envisioned santan, yellow, broth. It was green, dry. And the flavour is unexpected. It is like an explosion of green freshness in your mouth. It’s hard to imagine laksa being a fresh flavour when we are used to it in coconut and chili. But used this way, Chef Willin exploits the full green-ness of the leaf. Set with pasta (perfectly al dente, by the way), really fresh prawns and quails eggs and a dusting of chili flakes, you get the perfect combination of fresh, comfort, bounce, chew, spice and a riot of flavour. The simplicity of it means nothing is overshadowed and you really get to taste it.

Laksa Linguine

For dessert, our server (who was knowledgeable and helpful) suggested coconut ice cream and Gula Melaka. Mon dieu, it was so good that Sue (who had also ordered it) didn’t want to offer anyone else a taste (sorry to rat you out Sue). The single scoop of ice cream was creamy, a subtle coconut flavour, with a knockout Gula Melaka melt. Chef Willin later told us that he only buys ‘the best stuff’. Most Gula Melaka we get is mixed or dilulted – this was 100% pure. It wasn’t overwhelmingly sweet – just incredibly flavourful.

Chili Crab Spaghetti

Also outstanding were the chilli crab spaghetti (exactly as you would imagine, but more subtle, less jelak) and the cod ravioli. The handmade ravioli was more like dumplings; an incredibly clean, simple, tasty dish. In fact when I next go back, I’m going to be torn between the cod ravioli and laksa linguine.

We asked Willin how he would describe his food, and he said ‘ModSin – Modern Singapore’. I would describe it as deceptively simple, with care taken over the mix of flavours to bring out the best in each. Not showy, but imaginative and respectful of subtlety of flavour. Inventive, to take traditional food and show you a new way to taste it. Unpretentious – for the love of food, not for ‘cuisine’. And of course, that killer ingredient – passion and love, that takes it to a whole new level.